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Trails on BLM Lands

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) manages 245 million acres of land, mostly in the west. However, these wild lands don’t contain many recreation trails.

As the west becomes more populated and the demand for recreation increases, BLM land needs better networks of non-motorized trails. The Wilderness Society is helping the BLM adapt.

Recreation on BLM lands

The Bureau of Land Management has a broad “multiple-use” mission for managing its lands, which includes the interests of:

Recreation.

Energy development.

Livestock grazing.

Timber production.

Thankfully, recreation has become a higher priority for BLM in recent years. However, they don’t have a well-developed network of non-motorized recreation trails on their wild lands. Now that these are in higher demand, the agency is beginning to set aside a portion of its trails for quiet recreation experiences.

What we are doing

The Wilderness Society is working to increase the Bureau of Land Management's commitment to non-motorized recreation. In cooperation with the American Hiking Society, the American Horse Council and the International Mountain Bicycling Association, we are organizing local and regional recreation organizations to work with the BLM so that they set aside areas for non-motorized quiet recreation.